Can lower income students at Abby Kelley Foster Charter School afford new sports fees?

Monday

Sep 30, 2013 at 6:00 AM

By Jacqueline Reis, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

WORCESTER — Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School is charging sports and activity fees for the first time this year, a move that puts the school in line with the majority of charter schools in Central Massachusetts and many public schools.

However, neither of the other two charter schools in Worcester charges sports and activity fees, and those in Central Massachusetts that do have far smaller percentages of low-income students.

Almost 63 percent of Abby Kelley Foster's students come from low-income households. The school is charging $100 per sport and $25 per activity, which is the lowest sports fee among local charters. However, the school is also charging $25 per sport and $10 per activity for low-income families, while some other schools waive the fee entirely for certain families.

"The school recognizes that not all families can afford to pay fees to participate in after-school activities. We established a fee structure that we feel is appropriate for all our families regardless of their income status," AnnMarie Little, Abby Kelley Foster's director of government relations, said in an email.

So far, families seem to be paying. The deadline for paying assessed fees hasn't passed yet, but Ms. Little said 98 percent of them were already in. The money won't cover all the costs associated with sports and clubs but should help pay busing costs, uniforms and equipment. The fees are "just one way to help us support the many different activities we offer our students," Ms. Little said.

Adam Piskorz, whose son, Kamil, is on the Abby Kelley Foster soccer team, said he does not mind bearing some of the cost. "This is the only money we pay," he said. "It's like a symbolic amount. That's fine."

Neither Worcester public schools nor the other two charter schools in Worcester — Seven Hills and Spirit of Knowledge — charge fees, but their circumstances are slightly different: Seven Hills only goes up to eighth grade, and Spirit of Knowledge does not offer sports at all. All three have percentages of low-income students in the 70s.

Outside Worcester, charter school sports and activity fees range from those roughly in line with public districts to one where high activity fees make music programs and very specialized offerings possible.

The highest charter school sports fees in Central Massachusetts are at Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School at Devens, which charges $275 per sport to a student body that is only 2.3 percent low-income. The fee is not far above Wachusett Regional High School's, and Francis W. Parker has a smaller proportion of low-income students.

Students at the Advanced Math & Science Academy Charter School in Marlboro pay the highest activity fees, with some costing up to $427, but only 6 percent of its students are low-income. The school draws family from its immediate vicinity and as far away as Newton and Wellesley.

"We try to support whatever interests come about from the student population," AMSA Executive Director John M. Brucato said. That openness comes with high fees structured to help pay for instructors, materials and travel. The school doesn't have a music program during the school day, so students who want to join the after-school jazz ensemble have to pay $302 to defray the cost of the instructor, Mr. Brucato said. Other activities on AMSA's long list include math team ($77), homework club ($103) and art portfolio club ($427).

On the athletic side, the school offers traditional sports as well as fencing and charges fees of more than $250 to help cover rentals and other costs.

"It's a revenue that we require because of the additional expenses that we have, because we don't own our own facilities," Mr. Brucato said.

It's also revenue that the school waives for the small number of students who can't afford it. "The fee is never going to stand between a child and their ability to participate," he said.

North Central Charter Essential School in Fitchburg has the same ethos, said Executive Director Stephanie Davolos, but she noted that it's always tough to make the budget work. Playing soccer for the first time can be "powerful and transformative," she said, but funding a program that generally does not cut students is expensive. The school also doesn't charge admission at games.

"It really is a challenge," Ms. Davolos said. "A lot of area schools can't make sure that everybody gets to play, because it's cost-prohibitive, and we've worked hard to make sure that's not our story."

Many traditional public schools have been charging bus, sports and/or activity fees for years. At Wachusett in Holden, for instance, students must pay $250 per sport. Low-income students make up 7.8 percent of the school's student body, and the district reduces or waives the fees for these students, depending on whether they qualify for reduced or free lunch.

Worcester, on the other hand, has never charged fees. If the district were to waive fees for students from low-income families, then only 27 percent of students would pay the fee, said Chief Financial and Operations Officer Brian E. Allen. "It's really then creating a different tax for the middle class; I don't think that's what we want to do," he said.